Voluntary cleanup and the Voluntary Party Liability Exemption (VPLE)

Any individual, business or unit of government that conducts an environmental investigation and cleanup of a contaminated property, while following state requirements and with the oversight of DNR staff, can receive an exemption from future environmental liability for historical contamination. This liability exemption applies to the release of hazardous substances that are sampled during the site investigation.

Recent concerns over emerging contaminants, particularly per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances ("PFAS"), in Wisconsin and nationally have prompted the DNR to evaluate the potential for historical discharges of PFAS and other emerging contaminants at properties enrolled in the VPLE program that are pursuing a Certificate of Completion (COC). Based on these concerns, the DNR has concluded that the risk of a PFAS release cannot be ruled out at a VPLE property without confirmation testing.

The interim decision is to offer a voluntary party a COC for the hazardous substances that are investigated after all the VPLE requirements have been met. COCs will not be awarded that cover substances that were not investigated but could be discovered in the future.

This interim decision does not affect properties that have already received a Certificate of Completion.

Basics

Eligible applicants

The Voluntary Party Liability Exemption is an elective environmental cleanup program. Interested persons who meet the definition of "voluntary party" are eligible to apply. A "voluntary party" is any person who submits an application and pays all the necessary fees. The "voluntary party" can be the company that owned and operated a facility or it can be a new purchaser.

Eligible sites

Most properties that have had a discharge of a hazardous substance are eligible for VPLE. Some properties are excluded from the VPLE process, as described in Wis. Stat. s. 292.15(7). Specifically, properties with the following are NOT eligible:

a property that is listed or proposed to be listed on the Superfund National Priorities List;

a solid waste facility or site that is an approved facility as defined in s. 289.01(3), Wis. Stats. (these are typically larger landfills);

a hazardous waste treatment, storage or disposal facility that first began operation after the voluntary party acquired the property;

a licensed hazardous waste treatment, storage or disposal facility operated on the property before the date on which the voluntary party acquired the property and that is operated after the date on which the voluntary party acquired the property; and

any hazardous waste disposal facility that has been issued a license under s. 144.441 (2), 1995 Wis. Stats., or s. 289.41 (1m), Wis. Stats., or rules promulgated under those sections, for a period of long-term care following closure of the facility.

In addition, some sites may not be eligible to participate or to complete the VPLE process due to technical issues associated with the environmental clean up at the site. Properties with waste sites (e.g., a landfill) must obtain a ch. NR 726, Wis. Adm. Code, site closure in order to receive the VPLE protections. It must do so without the reliance on any active remedial system to ensure compliance with environmental and public health standards, such as active treatment or collection systems relating to groundwater, leachate or gas.

VPLE cleanup standards

Properties cleaned up through the VPLE process must conduct the environmental investigation and response actions in accordance with the same cleanup standards as any environmental cleanup conducted in Wisconsin. For more information see the Cleanup Overview page and the Cleanup Rules and Laws page.

VPLE laws

Application and Fees

Application process

To participate in the Voluntary Party Liability Exemption process, you must submit a completed application form (Form 4400-178) [PDF] to the regional DNR Office. Enclose a $250 application fee, payable to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and all required attachments with your application.

Within 30 days of receiving your letter of eligibility, you must send the DNR an advanced deposit of $2,000 for properties less than one acre and $4,000 for properties one acre or larger. If the cost of the hourly oversight fees is less than the advance deposit, you will receive a refund from the DNR. These fees are used to cover DNR oversight costs. If oversight fees are greater than the deposit, the voluntary party will be billed quarterly.

Please submit a separate application for each property. A property is the area of real property included in a VPLE application, made up of a legally identifiable parcel or legally identifiable contiguous parcels created in compliance with applicable laws.